Most of us never have the experience of feeling as if we are disconnected from our own body and mind, but if you are suffering from depersonalization disorder then you feel this detachment far too frequently. Our guest, Jeffrey Abugel, has experienced depersonalization disorder personally and has co-authored one of the seminal books on the topic. Recently, he has authored a second book about the experience of living with this disorder and he came on our show to share a deeper look into the world of depersonalization.

"There is no shame in having DID," says one woman living with Dissociative Identity Disorder. Using the pseudonym Pilgrim to protect her family, she says she initially felt shame about her disorder. But with the help of her therapist, she now feels there's nothing wrong with having a Dissociative Identity Disorder diagnosis and wants to pass that message on to others.

"My life was quite unbearable ... I tried ending my life several times at 8 years old," says Paula of surviving child abuse at the hands of her mother, who had Dissociative Identity Disorder. Perplexed by her mother's erratic swings from extreme violence to utter confusion to gentle kindness, Paula didn't understand her mom until she saw the movie Sybil.

In treatment for Dissociative Identity Disorder (previously classified as Multiple Personality Disorder) since 1992, Sarah E. Olson fully integrated more than fifty alters. "Integration doesn't make your life instantly healed," says Sarah, author of Becoming One: A Story of Triumph Over Multiple Personality Disorder and the Third of a Lifetime blog.